Among metals and metalloids having potentially harmful effects on the environmental compartments, mercury (Hg) is unique for a number of reasons. It is chemically distinctive (three oxidation states), volatile in surface environment, and has tendency to form organic compounds in biological system. Minor perturbation in the Hg cycle could result in major changes in the exposure or uptake by plants and animals. Analytical developments in last decades expanded possibilities to measure isotopic composition of Hg. Mercury has 7 stable isotopes (196, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202 and 204) and their isotopic composition is presented as δδ (‰) , which is the deviation from the reference material:
δδ (‰) XXXHg={ [ (XXXHg/198Hg)sample/ (XXXHg/198Hg)SRM3133 ] -1 }*1000 (1) where xxx is the mass of Hg isotope. The NIST SRM 3133 is recommended as a reference material.
Isotopic composition of Hg may be used for source tracing and processes description. All biotic and some abiotic, and photochemical transformations of Hg cause Hg isotope fractionation, which can be either mass dependent (MDF) or mass independent (MIF). δ202Hg is suggested for reporting MDF measurement. The MIF is expressed as:
ΔΔXXXHg (‰) = δδ XXXHg –(δδ 202Hg * ßxxx) (2) where ß is the fractionation factor and its values can be found in Berquist and Blum, Science, 2007, 318. Ratios of MDF to MIF could give important information for biogeochemical process description.
The aim of the project is to trace the source of Hg in organic soils and/or peat bogs using elemental and isotopic compositions. The samples will be studied at sites highly polluted by (i) Pb-Zn and Hg ore mining and smelting (Brdy Hills), (ii) coal burning (Krušné and Jizerské Mts.) and compared with unpolluted reference site (Šumava Mts). Environmental geochemistry group is familiar with the soil/peat sampling and processing. Soils and peats will be dated using 210Pb and 14C (Poznan Radiodating Laboratory). Mercury isotopes will be determined by multicollector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC ICP MS, Neptune plus, Thermo, Germany) after cold vapour generation.
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GAČR 19-08614S „Biogeochemistry of mercury isotopes in anthropogenically affected areas“
GAČR 19- 08614S
Deadline is closed